Auburndale, Fla. – The Saints finally got the result they were looking for yesterday (Mar. 11) with two massive wins against the Dordt Defenders. AQ tallied 23 hits and only allowed four runs in a dominant performance on both sides of the ball.
The Monday sweep improved Aquinas to 8-10 on the season.
Game 1: Aquinas 13, Dordt 1 (7 Innings)
AQ's offensive explosion began in the second inning after
Nicolas Verdugo hit a bases-clearing double to put three runs on the board. The Saints then added on another run in the fourth after
JD Gillies singled and
Grant Martin hit him home with a double.
The fifth inning is where most of Aquinas' damage came from.
Ramsey Bousseau started the frame with a leadoff triple and then scored on a wild pitch. That was the start of a colossal two-out rally.
Ryan Gillings walked and
Mark Binkowski smashed the ball over the right-center fence for his first homer of the season. The party didn't stop there as AQ once again loaded up the bases and a massive throwing error by the defender's shortstop resulted in three Aquinas runs. Bousseau smoked a double for good measure to give the Saints seven runs in the inning.
A trio of singles in the seventh from Martin,
Landon Mueller, and
Cameron Greener tacked on an additional two runs to give the Saints 13.
Dordt's lone run came in the fourth inning, but it was an otherwise uneventful game for the Defenders.
Conor Gausselin started on the mound before
Kasy Shadduck,
Mason Hill, and
Aaron Hileman all came in relief. The quartet of pitchers allowed just four hits and struck out seven.
Game 2: Aquinas 9, Dordt 3 (7 Innings)
AQ picked up right where it left off in the ensuing game. Hits from Bousseau, Martin, and Gillies, along with a Dordt error gave the Saints a quick 3-0 lead.
The lead grew to five due to some poor Defenders pitching.
Jayden Timmer singled and stole second before he easily moved to third on a wild pitch.
Dawson Shearer was then walked and he stole second to put two runners in scoring position. Martin reached base on a fielder's choice play after Timmer beat the throw home. Another wild pitch gave Dawson a free pass home.
Dordt finally got on the board in the third inning, but AQ piled it on in the fourth. A Binkowski triple scored
Nathan Wilcox before a defensive error allowed Binkowski to take home. Gillings walked,
Luke LaCross hit a double, and a sacrifice bunt from Timmer scored both runners. After the fourth inning, the Saints held a commanding 9-1 lead.
A pair of consolation runs in the seventh frame made the scoreline closer than the game actually was as the game ended 9-3 in favor of AQ.
The Saints pitched five pitchers this game as
Zach Marshall,
Sean Page,
Blake Waibel,
Jack Crittendon, and Martin all saw time on the bump. Over seven innings, Aquinas allowed eight hits and struck out nine with no walks.
By the Numbers
AQ outhit the Defenders 23-12 over the two games and outscored them 22-4.
Bousseau and Grant both ended the series with four hits. Bousseau had a team-leading seven total bases with a triple, double, and two singles.
Verdugo had four RBIs on his two hits. Binkowski, Timmer, LaCross, Gillies, and
Aidan Schmuckal all had a pair of hits.
Up Next
The Saints fly back home for games on Saturday for a conference matchup against the Madonna Crusaders. This will be a home game at the Farmers Insurance Complex. The first pitch is scheduled to be thrown at 1:00 p.m.
